Spey
/speɪ/noun
A river in northeastern Scotland, and the source of the name of the whisky region around it.
Did you know?The River Spey’s name is so old that scholars generally treat it as pre-Celtic, meaning its original sense is lost to history rather than safely translated.
Etymological Timeline
Pre-Celtic / Prehistoric
Unknown
*spey
“An ancient river name of unknown original meaning”
Medieval Latin
Latin
Spay
“A recorded Latinized form of the river name”
Middle English
English
Spey
“The river in Scotland”
Modern English
English
Spey
“The River Spey in Scotland, and by extension the surrounding whisky region”